The restaurants worth a reservation in Kyoto, from neighbourhood bistros to the new classics.
The restaurants worth the trip in Kyoto: bistros, neo-classics, neighbourhood favourites, and the rooms locals book first.
26 places
Order Eight-course tofu kaiseki with yuba sashimi and warmed soy-milk pots
Tofu-kaiseki on a Kamogawa riverside terrace, hidden down a narrow Kiyamachi alley in a preserved Taisho-era townhouse just steps from Pontocho.
Order Yudofu Gozen course with simmered Kyoto vegetables and tempura
A long-running garden-side yudofu room beside Nanzen-ji, set on a 1,200-tsubo strolling-garden plot in Kyoto that changes with every season.
Order Yudofu set with dengaku miso-glazed tofu skewers
Nanzenji Sando Kikusui in Sakyo in Kyoto is a sukiya inn near Nanzenji with a Jihei Ogawa garden, yudofu kaiseki featuring Hattori tofu, seasonal courses.
4 of the restaurants on this list are in Pontocho. So are these tours and tastings.
Order Matsu Gozen set: yudofu, yuba-sashimi and seasonal Kyo-yasai
A Nishijin yudofu room set in a former silk-warehouse machiya, opened in the 1970s. Quiet, courtyard-view tatami; locals know the Matsu Gozen set.
Order Cold sesame Omen with seasonal vegetable plate
A hand-cut udon counter beside Ginkaku-ji, opened in Kyoto in 1967. The Omen bowl pairs wheat noodles with sesame, vegetables and a dipping dashi.
Order Unaju lacquer-box rice and grilled eel with sansho
Charcoal-grilled freshwater eel on Kyogoku Shotengai since the Taisho era. Lacquered chests, tatami rooms upstairs, the smoke spilling onto Sanjo.
Order Hitsumabushi served three ways with dashi tea-pour finish
A Michelin-listed unagi specialist on the main Arashiyama lane since 1967, rebuilt 2009. Steamed-then-grilled Kanto-style, with a generations-deep tare.
Order Unaju with white-grilled shirayaki appetiser
A Pontocho unagi room above the Kamogawa in Kyoto, founded 1916. Edomae-style grill-then-steam, with a kawayuka deck May to September. Priced at ¥¥¥.
Order Tokusei ramen with double char siu and Kujo negi green onions
The reference shoyu-tonkotsu ramen of Kyoto, served from before dawn since 1947. Five-minute walk from Kyoto Station, queues form by 11:00 daily.
Order White-soy ramen with a soft-boiled ajitama
A Michelin Bib Gourmand ramen counter three minutes from Kawaramachi Station. Light dashi broth, white soy and a chashu that earns its queue.
A sample of Kyoto hotels from our booking partner, who list 2,260 here. Live prices and availability open on their site.
Khaosan Kyoto Guesthouse
With a stay at Khaosan Kyoto Guesthouse, you'll be centrally located in Kyoto, steps from Kawaramachi and w...
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EN HOTEL Kyoto
With a stay at EN HOTEL Kyoto in Kyoto (Central Kyoto), you'll be steps from Shijo Omiya and 6 minutes by f...
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Kyoto Guesthouse - Hostel
Located in Kyoto (Central Kyoto), Kyoto Guesthouse - Hostel is within a 5-minute drive of Nij Castle and Ka...
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Connect Hotel Kyoto
With a stay at Connect Hotel Kyoto in Kyoto (Central Kyoto), you'll be steps from Shijo Omiya and 5 minutes...
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Order Black-broth ramen and a half order of yakimeshi fried rice
A 1938-founded ramen counter near Kyoto Station, famous for its jet-black soy-sauce broth and chewy noodles. Side yakimeshi is half the order.
Order Hachiku shellfish ramen with whole-wheat noodles
A shellfish-broth ramen room two minutes from Kyoto Station's north exit. Whole-wheat noodles, signature Hachiku bowl with a clean uni finish.
Order Seabura Special Shoyu Ramen
The flagship of Kyoto's Ichijoji ramen street, a stretch with multiple ramen shops competing on a Sakyo-ku block. Light chicken-shoyu, Kujo-negi piled on top.
Order Yuki shojin set with the temple's signature sesame tofu
Bib Gourmand-listed shojin-ryori inside Tenryu-ji's precinct in Arashiyama. Three-course set lunches eaten facing the temple's Sogen garden.
Order Tetsubachi ryori shojin set, served in seven nested bowls
Daitoku-ji shojin-ryori served in nested vermillion lacquer bowls modelled on a Buddhist begging bowl. Garden-view tatami inside the Daiji-in sub-temple.
Order Premium wagyu sirloin and tongue salt for two
The Sanjo flagship of Kyoto's largest yakiniku family, run from a Kyoto Sanjo shopping-street site since 1997. Japanese black wagyu cuts grilled tableside.
Order Premium-pork loin set with sesame-ground tonkatsu sauce
Tonkatsu born in Kyoto and exported nationally. The Sanjo flagship still grinds its own sesame for the dipping sauce; both loin and fillet plates.
Order Chef's omakase, 20 pieces over 90 minutes
An eight-seat Edomae sushi counter just off Hanamikoji in Gion, Kyoto, run by chef Iwa with Tsukiji-trained habits. 20-piece omakase, no menu.
Order Obanzai assortment with simmered ebi-imo and yuba
The grandmother of Kyoto obanzai counters. Daily-changing seasonal dishes set in clay pots along a tatami room since 1958, three minutes from Sanjo Station.
Order Daily tofu obanzai set with simmered fish
An obanzai counter five minutes from Hankyu Kawaramachi in Kyoto where the tofu plates outshine the rest. Daily set lunches, no reservations needed.
Order Tesaki sushi assemble-your-own tray
AWOMB Karasuma Honten in Nakagyo in Kyoto is the original teori-zushi machiya, around 50 seasonal vegetables and obanzai to assemble hand-rolled sushi.
Order Maizuru sashimi mori-awase platter for two
An izakaya in Kyoto pairing fresh seafood from Maizuru Port with Kyotamba chicken plates. Karasuma-side address, almost everything under 1,000 yen.
Order Yakitori assortment plus three-sauce kushikatsu set
Yakitori and kushikatsu on a Kiyamachi second floor, the house tare on its 20th year of topping-up. Three dipping sauces, late-night counter trade.
Order Premium kaiseki with seasonal seafood and wagyu
A modern kappo on Pontocho serving 10-course kaiseki anchored by Maizuru seafood and Tamba wagyu. Counter seats face the river through sliding shoji.
Order Chef's omakase course including the night's signature pizza
A wood-fired pizzeria and tasting counter on the Philosopher's Path, run by chef Yoshihiro Imai with a daily-changing 12-course Italian-Japanese menu.
Order Chef's omakase with open-fire grilled vegetables and seafood
A 10-seat modern Japanese counter from chef Jacob Kear (ex-Noma) and Stuart Brioza. Open-fire technique meets Kyoto produce in a 12-course menu.
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